Kids

Road Trip Fun

Are you ready for a road trip? People in the United States will take millions of trips this year — many of them traveling by car. The most popular treks are trips to the beach, visits to friends and family, and scenic drives. A scenic drive means there's something to see while you're driving, like an ocean, mountains, or a beautiful valley.

But sometimes when you're on the road, there isn't a whole lot to look at. For those times, you'll need to keep yourself busy. Here are some ideas:

Bring a small map or road atlas. Use stickers to track your family's progress.

Create a trip box that includes stickers, pipe cleaners, pens, paper, and anything else you want to have on hand.

Draw. You can draw what's outside your window or make a game out of it by drawing a picture of someone that you know and making everyone guess who it is.

Start writing in a trip journal and keep track of what you do each day on your vacation. Add photos later.

Read aloud — a scary story or a mystery are great choices.

Make up your own story and draw the illustrations to go with it.

Listen to an audiobook.

Play some of your favorite electronic games or watch a DVD.

Listen to music.

Sing silly songs that you might be too old for, like "Old MacDonald," "B-I-N-G-O," and "She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain" — or even Christmas songs if you're in the mood. For added fun, make up your own silly songs with your family's help.

Snooze.

Play "I Spy."

Play the license plate game by trying to spot as many different states as you can.

Play "20 Questions."

Play travel games, such as checkers, that have magnetic pieces that won't slip off the board.

Play the "My Favorite" game by picking your top five songs, books, ice cream flavors, sports heroes, etc.

Have a spelling bee or trivia contest. Bring index cards to write down words or questions.